Towards sustainable urban basic services in low-income countries: A Technological Innovation System analysis of sanitation value chains in Nairobi

•Extension of the TIS methodology to the level of value chains enables addressing wide range of transition processes.•Assessment of functional TIS performance of each segment of a value chain.•Analysis of alternative governance mode of a TIS opens-up variety of recommendations to improve innovation development.•Case study of sanitation value chain innovation initiatives in informal settlements of Nairobi as an emerging TIS.•Identification of more strongly coordinated governance modes of the TIS in Nairobi to overcome system failures.